Know in the art is an exhaust purification device for an internal combustion engine in which an exhaust purification catalyst is arranged inside an engine exhaust passage and a hydrocarbon feed valve is arranged upstream of the exhaust purification catalyst in the engine exhaust passage, a precious metal catalyst is carried on an exhaust gas flow surface of the exhaust purification catalyst and a basic exhaust gas flow surface part is formed around the precious metal catalyst, the exhaust purification catalyst has the property of reducing the NOx which is contained in the exhaust gas when making the concentration of hydrocarbons which flow into the exhaust purification catalyst vibrate by within a predetermined range of amplitude and within a predetermined range of period and has the property of being increased in amount of storage of NOx which is contained in the exhaust gas if making the vibration period of the hydrocarbon concentration longer than the predetermined range, and a first NOx removal method in which NOx contained in the exhaust gas is removed by injecting hydrocarbons from the hydrocarbon feed valve by the predetermined period and, a second NOx removal method in which stored NOx is released from the exhaust purification catalyst to remove the NOx by making the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas which flows in to the exhaust purification catalyst rich by a period longer than the predetermined period, are selectively used (for example, see PLT 1). In this exhaust purification device, for example, the NOx removal action by the first NOx removal method is performed when the temperature of the exhaust purification catalyst is high, while the NOx removal action by the second NOx removal method is performed when the temperature of the exhaust purification catalyst is low.